Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
San Calendar Year 21, the human allied forces attacked the Orc King of Menkaure. In the wake of the war, heavy taxes were levied on food and living expenses, causing chaos. All order within the city was lost, as humanity devolved into committing acts of arson and robbery.
In the end, the entire capital was annihilated. The hundreds of thousands of orcs that had yet to flee the city were massacred by the allied forces, and the entire bustling capital of Menkaure was burned to the ground.
The King of Menkaure ended his own life, jumping into the Kary River after being chased by the allied forces. The war had exhausted the resources of the Menkaure Kingdom. It collapsed shortly thereafter, and was now just another name in the history books.
In Ayer City, a team of human cavalry soldiers, dressed in armor and helmets, trekked along a small path.The orc farmers retreated to the sides of the roads, staring down at the ground, as they were afraid to make eye contact.
The entire city had been emptied. Some had fled to the mountains, while others had fled back to their former clans. All of the shops in the west side of the city had been closed. Only Lu Zhiyu’s clinic remained open. It was filled with many injured patients, who were lying in bed.
The expedition force held up its golden red flag, which showed the insignia of the Knights of Light. They entered the city, finding the gates wide open. There were no guards left. In fact, almost all of the people of Ayer City had long since fled. Even the officials, who had been running the city, had abandoned it.
The cavalry was boisterous, as it paraded through the streets. All of the buildings’ doors were shut tightly, as those in the few remaining households watched them through their doors and windows in horror. Finally, they stopped in front of the doors of Lu Zhiyu’s clinic,looking at him.
“Hey, Saint Maria!”
“Saint Maria!”
The knights exchanged greetings with Lu Zhiyu, as their hands were laid on their chests, according to the common mannerisms of the Church of Light. “Mr. Randhir? I have two soldiers, who have been seriously injured, and I would like to seek your help. I can’t believe I have found a human doctor here!”
“As long as there are patients who need us, we will be here. However, we save people, while you only kill them. This is just a simple little town. All of the rich people within the city have long since fled. All of the remaining citizens are only some kind, poor folks. So, please do no evil here!” Lu Zhiyu stared sternly into the knight’s eyes.
The knight replied immediately, “We are not the dogs and executioners of the nobles. We are the shepherds of the gods. My name is Brian. I am a knight from St. Sarl City. Rest assured, we are not like those other robbers. We only came here to accomplish a mission.”
Lu Zhiyu took them inside, then moved the two wounded men to the second-floor clinic. The other orcs in the hospital watched them with hostility. Lu Zhiyu had to treat them personally. Both of them were seriously injured.
One had lost a hand and suffered from excessive blood loss, while the other had an arrow that was lodged in his abdomen. Though part of the arrow was cut off, the rest of it was embedded deep within him, making it quite difficult to pull out.
After Lu Zhiyu had treated them, they were in much better states. After taking their medicine and getting bandaged up, they fell asleep.
“I didn’t expect to find such a skilled doctor here. You are much better than the court doctors!” Brian exclaimed, as he thanked Lu Zhiyu.
Lu Zhiyu sat and chatted with him for a bit. “I am quite close to Bohr Kelermo.”
Brian sat up immediately, utterly in awe now. “You are a friend of Mr. Kelermo? I have always admired him! Due to his research, we now have cures for many diseases. As such, a doctor was recently able to save my mother!”
During the conversation, it was easy to see that Brian was very friendly to doctors. He was also extremely angry and dissatisfied with the actions of the armies, which were led by the nobles among the human coalition forces.
He had come here with a mission from the upper reaches along the Kary River, ordered to look for something. Brian did not elaborate on the exact details of the item.
Ayer City was already downstream of the Kary River. If they went any further south, they would reach the tributaries of the Kary River, including the Red River. As such, it seemed that they had failed to accomplish their mission.
In the evening, Lu Zhiyu came to the deserted Kary River. This was quite a far distance downstream, so the river was relatively slow moving. From time to time, in the last few days, a large number of bodies would float by from upstream, their blood dying the water red. Those incidents cast a sinister feel upon the entire river. Even the fish in the river seemed ghastly.
After waiting for a long time, Lu Zhiyu saw something that was approaching from the distance. It went against the current, then leapt out of the water to hover in the air. It was a silvery-white holy sword.
On top of the longsword, Lu Zhiyu’s inscribed runes could be seen. The general meaning on the inscriptions were: humility, honesty, empathy, courage, fairness, sacrifice, glory, soul. They were the Eight Virtues of the Knight that Lu Zhiyu had chosen. The holy name of Faross decorated the sword’s hilt.
Lu Zhiyu reached out, the sword falling directly into his hand. Lu Zhiyu held it flat in his hands, as he traced his finger across the blade. He hadn’t expected the sword, which he had made as a bit of a joke, to provoke so much conflict within the Alen Continent. The originally unremarkable sword really did seem to hold some sort of strange mission, as it was currently shrouded in a sacred light.
After decades beside Ahenaten, it had been sealed for more than a thousand years inside his tomb, before finally falling into the hands of the Church of Light. After all these twists and turns, it continued to cause remarkable turmoil upon the continent. Each appearance and disappearance seemed to influence the lives and deaths of countless people.
Now, it was back in the hands of Lu Zhiyu. It had been well-maintained, and it appeared not to be much different than how it was when he had originally awarded it to Ahenaten. Only now, it somehow felt heavier, as if it had obtained the weight of a thousand years.
Lu Zhiyu mused, “Isn’t this just an ordinary longsword? Why fight so hard for it?”
After the departure of Brian’s squad, the last wave of the human armies also withdrew from the Kingdom of Menkaure. The armies of the other orc kingdoms and the nearby large orc tribes immediately descended on the ravaged land, aiming to gain territory. They were just like wolves that scavenged the body of a buffalo. They only brought more disasters upon the already traumatized people of Menkaure.
The entire Kingdom of Menkaure was in a state of complete chaos. Multiple forces rose up, as other tribes and kingdoms invaded and divided the land. The kingdom’s original peace had completely disappeared.
The city of Ayer had also completely fallen. One by one, all of the people in the remaining households departed. Gradually, it became an entirely empty city.
Lu Zhiyu stood outside his clinic in the sun. He carried a large suitcase. The winds carried sand and dust through the deserted shopping street. The empty shop doors and windows were boarded up, having long since been abandoned. The late spring breeze and the soft sunlight would have normally felt warm and intoxicating, but at the moment, it could only be described as a bleak scene.
Lu Zhiyu looked at the familiar streets, shops, and the furnishings on his door. All of them held many memories, but now, everyone was gone. Lu Zhiyu was the last to leave this empty city.
Since the Kingdom of Menkaure was destroyed by the humans, as they had conducted many mass killings. They had also looted, while burning the cities. Even though there had previously been goodwill towards Lu Zhiyu, his relations with the orcs became more strained with each passing day. Lu Zhiyu was gradually isolated, as he became more unpopular. In fact, many people in groups had left without telling Lu Zhiyu, much less inviting him to come along.
Verthandi clung to his thigh. “Daddy, I don’t want to leave our home!”
She pouted, as tears swirled in her eyes. “Why was there a war? Everyone was fine, so why did everything change?”
Lu Zhiyu knelt down. “There are many reasons to start a war. Revenge, interests, desires, greed… All of these things have caused wars. But most importantly, remember that the result of a war cannot be controlled. Once a war is initiated, it is like a beast that has been released from its cage. All of the evil hidden within creatures is released, which eventually leads to irreparable results. The people who initiate wars always think that they can control everything. They always hope to gain something through the war, but in most cases, it does not go as planned. Most times, both sides just sustain grievous damages.”
Verthandi raised a small fist. “I will be a virtuous knight in the future, like a hero from the stories. I will stop the wars. I want to protect everyone, including you, Daddy!”
Looking at Little Trouble’s innocent face, and hearing her childish words, Lu Zhiyu could not help but laugh. “Sure, you can protect Daddy in the future.”
She immediately made a strong, proud pose, but with her tiny and cute face, she looked nothing like a knight. Lu Zhiyu lifted the suitcase, then took the her hand, as they stepped out of the clinic onto the road.
“Daddy, where are we going?”
“Hmm? Us? Let’s travel around the world!”
The sun’s rays shone on the two of them, one big and one small, as their two long shadows stretched along the empty streets. The laughter of the little girl echoed on the streets.
